The Rum Diary (2011)

The Rum Diary Synopsis

Based on the debut novel by Hunter S. Thompson, The Rum Diary tells the increasingly unhinged story of itinerant journalist Paul Kemp (Johnny Depp). Tiring of the noise and madness of New York and the crushing conventions of late Eisenhower-era America, Kemp travels to the pristine island of Puerto Rico to write for a local newspaper, The San Juan Star, run by downtrodden editor Lotterman (Richard Jenkins). Adopting the rum-soaked life of the island, Paul soon becomes obsessed with Chenault (Amber Heard), the wildly attractive Connecticut-born fiancée of Sanderson (Aaron Eckhart). Sanderson, a businessman involved in shady property development deals, is one of a growing number of American entrepreneurs who are determined to convert Puerto Rico into a capitalist paradise in service of the wealthy. When Kemp is recruited by Sanderson to write favorably about his latest unsavory scheme, the journalist is presented with a choice: to use his words for the corrupt businessmen’s financial benefit, or use them to take the bastards down.

There were plenty of movies from this year that I absolutely loved and others that I absolutely hated, but there’s a very special category that exists between both of those ends: the ones that left me utterly disappointed. While I always enter a movie theater hoping to love the hell out of whatever I’m watching, the truth is that there are some films that I spend a lot of time thinking about and anticipating, only to be left frustrated at the end.

Moberg, portrayed by Giovanni Ribisi in the Bruce Robinson-directed adaptation of Hunter S. Thompson’s The Rum Diary, is an insane character. Stuck in Puerto Rico, his brain has been completely destroyed by drug and alcohol abuse, to the point that he has become a social pariah. He creates 470 proof alcohol, listens to records of Adolf Hitler speeches, and as basically lost his mind. But how do you play that kind of character without too far? Or is there such as thing as too far?

After the Shrek franchise went down in flames following the critical debacle that was the third and fourth movies, there wasn't much hope that spin off Puss In Boots would stand a chance at the box office.

In the film adaptation of Hunter S. Thompson’s The Rum Diary, the first time that Paul Kemp (Johnny Depp) meets Chenault, while out in a tiny paddle boat, he believes her to be a mermaid. Though she quickly corrects him and explains that she’s actually from Connecticut, that doesn’t put an end to his mystification.

This Friday the third movie based on the writings of Hunter S. Thompson, The Rum Diary, will be arriving in theaters. While time will tell how critics and fans react to the newest adaptation, the past is checkered. While Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas has attained cult status, Art Linson’s 1980 “biopic” Where The Buffalo Roam is mediocre and somewhat justifiably overlooked

A couple of things were absent from the clip, though. Depp, for starters, who couldn’t even be spotted in the background. Also, the bizarre visual touches Robinson appears to have slipped into his film (as evidenced by that massive tongue in the film’s strange trailer) are non-existent in this straightforward clip. But there’s dancing.

Disney has banned Johnny Depp from speaking to ABC affiliates about his film, The Rum Diary, which comes out on October 28th. The reason? It all comes down to a clause in Depp's Pirates of the Caribbean contract. Disney purportedly doesn't want The Rum Diary to "get more exposure" than the Pirates flicks. Clearly this is a valid concern

Winner, winner, roasted organic chicken dinner with a nice bottle of 1999 Domaine de la Romanee Conti La Tache, or however that saying goes. The Rotten Challenge is over. Little surprise here, I won. Convincingly. But I’ll save my gloating for the bottom. We’ve got some movies and predicting to get to

Two new clips from the upcoming Johnny Depp flick The Rum Diary demonstrate both the pros and cons of moving to Puerto Rico and embracing a booze-soaked hedonistic lifestyle. Based on the 1961 novel by Gonzo journalist (no, not Muppet Gonzo) Hunter S. Thompson, The Rum Diary follows a reporter named Paul Kemp who abandons the New York of the Eisenhower era and does just that.

We're only two weeks away from seeing The Rum Diary, Johnny Depp's long-awaited reunion with the works of Hunter S. Thompson, unleashed on the world. If you're as excited as I am, you can take solace in this new poster, which shows that Depp's character, Paul Kemp, could teach the Hangover guys a thing or two about booze-soaked foreign misadventures.

It would seem that FilmDistrict doesn't feel like they need Johnny Depp's face to sell audiences on Bruce Robinson's The Rum Diary. While the international poster we reported on yesterday brought us so close to Johnny Depp that we could almost see his pores, the US posters have been going a more creative route.

There are thousands if not millions of Hunter S. Thompson fans who have been waiting for Bruce Robinson's adaptation of The Rum Diary, but that's not the biggest mystery behind the project's numerous delays. Rather, it's the fact that Johnny Depp, arguably the biggest star in the world, is playing the film's starring role.

Starring Johnny Depp, Amber Heard, Aaron Eckhart, Giovanni Ribisi, Richard Jenkins and Michael Rispoli, The Rum Diary tells the tale of Paul Kemp (Depp), a freelance journalist who moves to Puerto Rico and begins working for a local newspaper. Surrounded by an insane cast of characters, Kemp ends up walking into a story when he learns that a rich business man named Sanderson (Eckhart) who is developing a land deal that may not be legal.

It's still somewhat hard to believe that a film based on Hunter S. Thompson's The Rum Diary is finally coming out. I can remember years ago when Benicio Del Toro was attached to direct and the film had Nick Nolte and Josh Hartnett co-staring with Johnny Depp. The project did eventually find its way into production under writer/director Bruce Robinson and a long time sitting on the shelf, the movie is set to be released on October 28th.

Hunter S. Thompson fans have been waiting for this day for what feels like forever. Johnny Depp and writer/director Bruce Robinson have been working for years to develop a film based on the gonzo journalists' The Rum Diary and while the movie completed production ages ago, a release date was never set.

It looks like the Johnny Depp starring adaptation of Hunter S. Thompson’s The Rum Diary may finally get released. The movie completed principle photography nearly a two years ago, and since then has been sitting on someone’s shelf with no sign that we’ll ever be allowed to see it.